[canook]

Hey all,

So about a month ago I got my car detailed. Did a complete buff and polish of the exterior. The car looked amazing. Since then, I've tried my best to wash it as little as possible (3 times, car was detailed March 17+18).

What really grinds my gears is how much the car has begun to swirl since then. They're not major but they are noticeable. I've been using 2 wash buckets, grit guards, sheepskin mitts, and waffle weave towels. I was one panel at a time, dunk in the rinse buckets, hose the mitt off again, dunk in soap and move to the next panel. When i dry i lay the towel on the paint and gently pat the section down.

My issue may be with the soap, I'm using Meguiars gold class and as I apply it over the surface of the car it just doesn't seem sudsy enough (if that makes sense), so I dump more in the bucket.

Guys I'm extremely frustrated, I really don't know what I'm doing wrong and I shelled out a lot of cash and 15 hours of my time learning how to correct my paint. For the record my car is black sapphire metallic.

Some tips would be useful (maybe using too much soap or too little, who knows)

[zaxjax]

It may not be your soap that is the problem. The problem is with the previous detail, the soap is breaking down the wax, sealant and revealing the swirls. The detailer may have you a glaze to fill your swirls instead of correcting them.

[fisherbln]

Originally Posted by zaxjax

It may not be your soap that is the problem. The problem is with the previous detail, the soap is breaking down the wax, sealant and revealing the swirls. The detailer may have you a glaze to fill your swirls instead of correcting them.

This could very well be the case. As to your comment about the soap: I've used Meguiars gold glass in the past without issue. I do use extra, but it is so cheap who cares.

It seems to me you are doing everything right when you wash the car. If you are introducing swirls it wouldn't be very many.

[ibimmer954]

You have to be careful how many times you use the waffle weave towels. I have had mine leave some swirls on the car, presumably because they're a little dirty. Make sure the towels are very clean.

I'd be more inclined the swirls are coming from the drying process, not the washing process.

[canook]

Originally Posted by ibimmer346

You have to be careful how many times you use the waffle weave towels. I have had mine leave some swirls on the car, presumably because they're a little dirty. Make sure the towels are very clean.

I'd be more inclined the swirls are coming from the drying process, not the washing process.

hey all,

thanks for the input. Anyways I can say without a doubt it wasn't the detailer. I was present during the 15 hour process even learning the ropes on how to properly polish a car. I don't know if you remember Nikku, but if you do, and read his prior posts, his results show he doesn't skip corners and "glaze" the car.

My issue is with these mitts I just find they aren't getting enough soap suds. I find it more like my mitt is full of water and a hint of soap, what should my soap to water ratio be? Could it be the water is simply diluting the soap too much and i'm basically washing with just a wet mitt?

Also, in regards to the towels I only used the 3 times to dry my car and there isn't so much as a smudge on them. To clean I just need to let them soak in some woolite, correct?

[Envious Eric]

try this to narrow down the problem area...

wash in a right to left pattern (starting at the top obviously) and dry in an up and down pattern. At that point you can see which way the swirling is going and adjust as necessary. Same thing with glass...do the insides up and down, and the outside left to right. If there are vertical streaks, they are on the inside.

[musc]

If you are confident that the detail was good (no glaze filling of swirls), then unfortunately you have reintroduced the swirls through washing/drying.

Envious erics advise about washing all in one direction and drying in the opposite is excellent. This will quickly tell if you if the swirls are coming from the wash or drying portion. I do this routinely to monitor my own washing/drying.

The soap could be an issue. It sounds like you aren't using the correct ratio. Every soap is different. You'll have to do a little research. Some will say x amount per bucket. You'll need to define just how much water they are using. I always use 4 gallons of water in my wash bucket and adjust my shampoo concentrations accordingly. My personal preference is not to have the soap 'sud up'. But rather I will fill the bucket with water and then pour in the soap and mix it with a mixing rod. You will get some suds, a little on top, but not a huge bucket of suds pouring out the bucket. Basically it looks like a bucket of colored liquid. Be more concerned with the lubricity of the solution. It should feel slick. The meguiars at the correct concentration should be good. A quick way to get extra lubricity would be to add a 1oz of ONR to your wash bucket. You can add 1oz to your rinse bucket as well to help pull the dirt to the bottom.

A few tips with BMW black (and just in general) is to use very little pressure with the mitt. Even with great soap, you dont want to be pressing the mitt down hard against the paint. With a good soap solution and good wax/sealant underneath, it shouldn't take much pressure at all to remove the dirt. Sheepskins are ok, but I prefer a natural sea sponge. They hold a ton of soap solution and are very soft. Basically the weight of the the sponge/soap is enough pressure to apply when gliding it across the paint.

Another thing you can do is pre-soak the panels with ONR QD solution. It's relatively cheap, but gives you that extra lubricity. I use two variations, one at standard QD dilution of 1oz in 16 oz bottle and another double strength at 2oz in 16oz bottle. Just mist it on the panel before washing with your mitt. It may seem like overkill, but its worth avoiding swirls in your black paint.

As far as drying, there really shouldn't be much water left on the car after washing if you have a good wax/sealant. If you are using a sprayer head, make sure you take it off at the end of the wash and run the water straight out the hose over each panel, working from the top down. You'll see the water sheet off and leave very little water bubbles/beads behind. With black, I would probably take the waffle weave and pat dry these areas instead of wiping the towel across the paint. If you want to wipe, again, use very little pressure, basically letting the weight of the towel do the work. Another solution would be to blow dry it with an air blower/leaf blower.

Hope some of this helps.